The present invention relates to the field of electronically distributed digital content, such as e-books. More particularly, the present invention relates to interactive collaboration among consumers of digital content.
An electronic book (also referred to as an e-book) is an electronic version of a traditional print book that can be downloaded (e.g. via the Internet) to a general-purpose computer system or to a portable electronic device. Text of the e-book is displayed on a display screen of the general-purpose computer system or portable device so that it can be read. An e-book reader can be a dedicated device or software stored on a programmable device that enables the reading of an e-book. Digital content is available in other forms, such as video, audio and text files, as well as multi-media presentations and files, such as electronic games and magazines.
E-books, for example, have certain advantages over traditional print books, including convenience and cost savings which come from: the ability to electronically distribute the content; preservation of natural resources which would otherwise be required for the manufacture and distribution of print books; and the convenience of allowing the consumer to electronically store many e-books, as opposed to print books which occupy shelf space and can be heavy to carry.
A drawback of e-books and other digital content is that it can be more difficult for a consumer to make and share written comments or other annotations. Consumers of traditional print books may be accustomed to taking actions such as making written comments in the margins, underlining or highlighting text and marking certain pages (by turning down the page corners or by using a bookmark). However, these actions cannot generally be performed on an e-book and other digital content while it is being displayed.
Therefore, what is needed is are improved techniques for annotating digital content, such as e-books. What is further needed are improved techniques for a plurality of persons to collaboratively annotate digital content.